Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Trump warns Kansans that US will 'burn' like France if Democrats win

US President Donald Trump on Monday used violent unrest in France as an argument against Democrats in his battle to defend a Kansas Senate seat long held by Republicans but in danger of falling to his political opponents. Trump's rally on behalf of Republican incumbent Roger Marshall was his latest foray into conservative states where Republican ​candidates are on defense due to voter frustrations over the Iran war and rising prices.

Trump administration says it has revoked over 300,000 visas

President Donald Trump's administration has revoked over 300,000 US visas during his second term, the State Department said on Tuesday as the federal government continues its ​sweeping immigration crackdown. The number showed an acceleration in the pace of visa revocations in recent weeks.

Trump warns Kansans that US will 'burn' like France if Democrats win

US President Donald Trump on Monday used ‌violent unrest in France as an ​argument against Democrats in his battle to defend a Kansas Senate seat long held by Republicans but in danger of falling to his political opponents. Trump's rally on behalf of Republican incumbent Roger Marshall was his latest foray into conservative states where Republican candidates are on defense due to voter frustrations over the Iran war and rising prices.

US judge dismisses Sam Altman's sister's sexual abuse lawsuit

Sam Altman on Tuesday won the dismissal of a civil lawsuit filed by his sister accusing the OpenAI co-founder and chief executive of repeated sexual abuse more than two decades ago, an accusation he denies. In dismissing Annie Altman's lawsuit, US District Judge Zachary Bluestone wrote that she had refused to appear for an independent medical examination despite warnings that failure to do so would result in the case's dismissal.

Ahead of elections, Bessent says a Democrat-led Congress could do little to stop Trump agenda

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Tuesday that there was not much a Democrat-led House of Representatives ‌could do to stop the Trump administration's agenda. "I think there's very little," Bessent said in an interview on 2Way TV two weeks ahead of November's midterm elections.

US Supreme Court snubs bid to revive plea deal for accused 9/11 mastermind

The US Supreme Court declined on Monday to hear a bid by Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the accused mastermind of the September 11, 2001, attacks, to revive a 2024 agreement that would have spared him the death penalty in exchange for a guilty plea — a deal scrapped by former Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. The justices turned away appeals by Mohammed and two co-defendants who had also signed plea agreements of a lower court's ruling that upheld Austin's decision to void the deals. The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit rejected an argument that Austin, who served under former President Joe Biden, had acted too late.

The midterm election outcomes that could shape Trump's final two years

Americans vote on November 3 in midterm elections that will determine who controls Congress for the final two years of President Donald Trump's term. Democrats need a net gain of four seats in both the US House of Representatives and US Senate to overturn Republicans' narrow 218-214 and 53-47 majorities.

Explainer-Three issues defining the 2026 US midterm elections

President Donald Trump’s record-low popularity, voter frustration over the cost of living and a fierce immigration fight are shaping the November 3 midterm ‌elections, which will determine whether Republicans keep control of Congress or Democrats gain the power to challenge his administration. Republicans hold narrow majorities in the House of Representatives and Senate. Democrats need a net gain of four seats to take control of each chamber.

US single-family housing starts plunge; building permits hit 3-1/2-year low

US single-family homebuilding fell sharply in September and permits for future construction tumbled to a 3-1/2-year low as higher mortgage rates suppressed demand, suggesting residential investment resumed its declining trend in the third quarter. The report from the Commerce Department on Tuesday followed on the heels of a National Association of Home Builders survey ‌on Monday showing sentiment among single-family homebuilders plunged in October to the lowest level since June 2012.

USDA plans to resume imports of Mexican cattle at more ports of entry

The US Department of Agriculture plans to resume cattle imports from Mexico at two additional US ports of entry, after halting shipments last year in an attempt to keep out the flesh-eating parasite New World screwworm, the agency said on Tuesday. The USDA plans to restart imports in Columbus, New Mexico, on October 26 and, if conditions for safe trade are in place, in Nogales, Arizona, on November 30, according to a post on X.

US Supreme Court will not review Trump's firing of labor board member

The US Supreme Court declined on Monday to hear a bid by a Democratic-appointed member of the National Labor Relations Board to challenge the legality of her firing by President Donald Trump. The justices turned away former NLRB member Gwynne Wilcox's appeal of a lower court's ruling that said the Republican president's January 2025 firing of her was a valid exercise of executive authority.

Trump says Washington golf course project to start immediately, despite judge's order

US President Donald Trump said on Monday that his administration would begin renovation work immediately on a historic Washington golf course that a federal judge had ordered could not proceed without prior court notification. The renovation work, which Trump a day earlier said would start next month, has become the subject of a lawsuit over environmental and historic preservation concerns.

University of North Carolina settles federal probes by Trump administration

President Donald Trump's administration has reached a settlement deal with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to close 18 federal probes over alleged ⁠race discrimination and antisemitism at the university. Trump has ​targeted universities with probes and funding-suspension threats over pro-Palestinian protests against US ally Israel's assault on Gaza, diversity initiatives, transgender policies and climate programs, leading to free speech, due process and ⁠academic freedom concerns.

US FDA issues guidance on apps used with prescription drugs

The US FDA on Tuesday issued guidance aimed at clarifying how drug companies can develop, distribute and label apps used alongside their prescription medicines. Here are some details:

Kennedy says Trump administration aims for regulated market for peptides

US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said on Tuesday the Trump administration aims to expand access to peptides by creating a regulated marketplace for the drugs promoted by social media influencers and by the health secretary. They have attracted consumers in a gray market, bolstered by social media claims for a host of unproven uses, and with scant safety and efficacy evidence from human studies.

Early US flu season, current strain may signal risk for younger people; doctors urge shots

Doctors are urging Americans aged 6 months and older to get vaccinated ⁠against the flu after an unusual early rise in cases on the West Coast that virologists are still working to understand. It could be the strain itself. The predominant flu strain this year is H1N1, which caused the 2009 swine flu pandemic and is now a standard part of the flu shot. But this year’s version of the virus has a new mutation called G155E.

Iran prolongs talks in stalemate to influence US midterms, officials say

Iran has deliberately prolonged talks with the US to try to weaken Donald Trump politically ahead of November's US midterm elections, senior officials say, while fears of renewed military action and deep distrust of Washington have reinforced Tehran's reluctance to strike a quick deal to end the war. Three senior Iranian officials and ​an Iranian insider, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Tehran was convinced the US president was ready to resort to renewed attacks to try to break the stalemate in the eight-month-old war.

One in three Americans back second execution attempt after failed one, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds

One-third of Americans think the government should try a second time to put a convicted criminal to death if a first execution attempt fails, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted after a botched lethal injection in Tennessee. The four-day poll, completed on Monday, showed 39% of respondents thought the government should instead allow convicts to ⁠serve life in prison following a failed execution, while 26% were not sure which was a better approach.

Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil asks US Supreme Court to hear case seeking to avoid re-arrest

Columbia University graduate Mahmoud Khalil on Monday asked the US Supreme Court to overturn a ruling that opened the door for President Donald Trump's administration to re-arrest and deport the Palestinian activist. Khalil's lawyers asked the justices to take up his case after the Philadelphia-based 3rd US Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that federal immigration law barred a lower-court judge from ordering his release from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody.

Trump, Bloomberg ramp up spending ahead of midterms

US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he would spend more than $400 million on Republican campaign efforts, while the New York Times reported that former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg was spending $80 million to ⁠help Democrats ahead ​of the November 3 midterm congressional elections. The financial commitments come as Democrats seek to win control of Congress from Trump's Republicans in the November 3 midterm elections.

Exclusive-Trump approval falls to record low of 31% as midterms near, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds

President Donald Trump's approval rating fell to a record low as Americans worried about high gasoline prices and appeared ready to punish his Republican Party in the November 3 congressional elections, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll that closed on Monday. Some 31% of Americans approve of Trump's performance in office, down a percentage point from two weeks earlier and the lowest level in either of his presidential terms, the four-day poll showed.

Trump drops threats against Canadian jet maker Bombardier, citing US jobs

President Donald Trump has dropped threats against Canadian jet maker Bombardier to ban it from the US market and instead vowed to take "good care" of the company's workers in Kansas. Trump's threats in September against Bombardier became a political issue in Kansas, where it employs 1,500 workers in Wichita. The threatened ban prompted calls to the White House from Kansas lawmakers including Republican Senator Roger Marshall, who is facing a tough re-election bid.

US to launch $8 billion support program for farmers to offset diesel costs, Trump says

President Donald Trump said on Monday the US Department of Agriculture will launch what he called a new "harvest fuel relief ⁠program" that will provide farmers with $8 billion in support to offset diesel costs during the harvest season. "Tonight, I'm also pleased to announce that the Department of Agriculture will be launching a new harvest fuel relief program, providing our farmers with $8 billion in support to offset diesel costs during this harvest season," Trump said in a midterm election campaign speech in Kansas.

Trump promises cash for fraud tips as he awards right-wing YouTuber

President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he would reward tipsters who uncover fraud in US government programs, launching the initiative by announcing a cash prize for a conservative online influencer. Speaking from the White House ⁠Oval Office, Trump said a new Fraud Whistleblower Incentive Program would award people an unlimited 1% commission on the fraud reported.

US Social Security Agency corrects nearly 15% of records in database cleanup

The ⁠US Social Security Administration said on Tuesday that it had corrected records for nearly 15% of all active Social Security numbers, adding missing death and citizenship information, as part of the Trump administration's effort to prevent fraud in the benefits program. In what the agency said was the most comprehensive cleanup in its 91-year history, the SSA added 17 million dates of death to records that previously lacked this information

At least 17 data center campuses proposed on US public lands, group says

At least 35 data center-related applications covering more than 24,000 acres of US federal land are pending or active across six Western states, according to an analysis by conservation group Center for Western Priorities. US Bureau of Land Management records show at least 17 proposed data center campuses and 13 related infrastructure projects, including transmission lines, pipelines, telecommunications facilities and access roads across Arizona, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah and Wyoming, according to the study.

US health agency confirms third measles-related death this year

The United States ‌has logged a third measles-related death this year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Tuesday, as the ‌country battles its worst outbreak in decades. The toll matches the previous year's total, with the agency reporting 4,410 confirmed cases nationwide as of October 15.

Michigan Republican candidate and UAW, in rare alignment, blast GM

Michigan Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers and the United Auto Workers union found rare common ground on Tuesday, separately accusing General Motors of putting ​shareholders ahead of workers after the automaker unveiled a new $20 billion stock buyback plan. Rogers, a former US House member, accused GM of wrongly investing in electric vehicles.